


Lost

by Elfinwood



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: BBC Sherlock - Freeform, Batjohn - Freeform, Tumblr: johnlock
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-21
Updated: 2013-05-24
Packaged: 2017-12-12 13:04:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/811897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elfinwood/pseuds/Elfinwood
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John was always different from the other bats, even from his birth. When he gets lost in a storm and becomes injured, he's scooped up by a human who's name is Sherlock. An interesting and fluffy relationship is born and the adventures begin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Birth

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry folks, no sexy times in this. Just a lot of cute fluff!

John wasn’t like other bats in his colony. He had always been a little different. From the day he was born, the other Leislers’ bats pondered at his uniqueness. When his mother flew off with the other pregnant bats to the nursing roost, she was elated to give birth to her second pup. Harriet, her first pup, had been an easy birth and had grown quickly. She had been and exemplary bat, little fussing and always doing what she was told. The other mothers had congratulated her on having such a sweetling. Now, flying to the birthing roost with her second pup, John’s mother recalled that day.

She was nervous and shaking. She had found a spot quickly and began to feel contractions even before all of the new mothers had arrived. She had already had Harriet and was nursing her by the time all the bats were roosted.

“My little Mike was a handful,” panted one mother bat, which had roosted beside her, beginning to feel her own labor pains, “You’re lucky this little one came out so easily”, nodding fondly at Harriet.

“How many have you had?” asked the younger bat, timidly, while nuzzling her little newborn.

“Oh! This is my sixth!” She squeaked proudly, and then grimaced as she felt a heavy contraction.

The younger, female bat was glad to have someone with experience with her for those few months after Harriet was born. It was comforting to have a matriarch of sorts around for her first pup. Matilda, as she was called, was a patient bat. She was a little bigger than most of the other females. The young mother clung to her almost as much has her newborn did those first few weeks, always asking questions about if such and such was normal, often getting a hearty chuckle from the older bat. Now, as she flew to the familiar birthing roost, she hoped she could find her, or someone like her, again.

Not that she was overly concerned. Her pregnancy had gone well. She had eaten plenty, as this warm season was abundant with insects. Her hibernation had been refreshing and she needed only to leave her warm roost a few times for water and to nibble some roots. She had every expectation that this birth would be like the first (as, of course, the pup would also be). She had had little encounter with any threats, although they had lost Silcia to a rather large spider web. Poor thing, there was nothing they could do really. She didn’t see the gigantic weaving and was entangled in the sticky strings before anyone could stop her. She had heard rumors that a human had come along and taken her out of it. But that was Pricilla’s story, and the bat often liked to gossip.

She shuddered at the thought, even though the night was clear and warm. Humans were bad news. They were dangerous creatures, who were often cruel to her kind. They occasionally wandered near their primary roosting grounds, but never bothered the colony. Human sightings weren’t all that rare, but it still sent a shiver of fear down her spine whenever one was reported. And there had been more and more sightings lately, for reasons the bats did not understand. It worried the young mother bat. Harriet was full grown now, and could take care of herself (even though she still worried about her…), but this new pup might be in danger if the humans kept coming closer as they were now.

She had heard from the neighboring Noctule colony, which they had spent the past winter with, that many of their members had gone missing during their nightly hunting excursions.

Bats that became lost or taken were referred to as the Lost Ones, and were treated as if they were dead, as very few ever returned. So, one could guess at the marvel and fear when, many moons later, these Lost Ones did return, alive and severely shaken, with strange objects wrapped around their legs.

These Lost Ones brought back stories of the strangest kind. Telling of caves liken to nothing they had ever seen or heard; caves which had many suns inside of them that the humans could control, making it day or night whenever they pleased. Caves that had slick, cold surfaces and strange, fur-like patches which the humans often wrapped them in. They told of humans touching them (the bats shivered with fear, for being touched by a human was said to be an everlasting curse) and poking cold, hard twigs into their bodies. After a time (since there was no moon, they did not know how long they had been trapped), the humans finally attached the strange circlets to their legs, and set them free into the comforting arms of the night.

The colony had not exactly welcomed the Lost Ones back with open arms. Many chiefly avoided them for fear that the curse from the humans’ touch might rub off onto them, and any future pups. John’s mother pitied them. Poor creatures. How awful and frightening the whole ordeal must have been. Upon hearing the horrific tale, John’s mother decided to teach all of her future pups about the dangers of humans and how they must stay away from them, at all costs. Better to be drowned than end up in the clutches of those strange and precarious animals. Harriet had listened, wide-eyed, to her mother’s warnings, and vowed never to explore too far or to investigate human going-ons, seeing as they were closer than ever to the roosting grounds. 

~~~

Lost in her thoughts, the young mother had been navigating by instinct and didn’t realize how close she was to the nursing roost. She squeaked with relief when she saw it in sight. Swooping into the warm cavern she quickly found a spot and settled in, waiting for the labor pains to start. It wouldn’t be long now, and she was looking forward to having a new little pup to nuzzle and feed.

She looked around, hoping to find the older bat from last year, but there was no sight of her. The young bat merely sighed and let her body relax. It had been a long flight, and her wings were aching. The pup in her belly was going to be a big one. She chittered to herself, happily, big pups were healthy pups.

She sat there for a while, her eyes shut and preparing herself for birth. She wasn’t nearly as nervous as she was at Harriet’s birth, but she was still rather shakey. Knowing that stress made the birth all the more difficult (and wasn’t good for the pup), she quietly meditated on staying relaxed; focusing on how wonderful it would be to finally hold her new little pup.

She heard a huffing and puffing then a thud as someone perched next to her. She slowly opened one eye and recognized the older bat.

“Matilda!” she squeaked with happiness.

“Hello, love,” she panted, catching her breath from the flight, “it’s nice to see you again. I see you’ve managed to make yourself a second.” She chuckled deeply, “And I, a seventh.” The younger bat smiled at her. She was glad to have her old friend back; she felt the last bits of tension leak out of her small body.

“This one is eager to be out,” Matilda puffed, smiling, “how are you fairing? Last season, you practically had the little pup out by the time I arrived”.

“Oh, well, I haven’t felt much yet,” the young bat sighed, “but I think it will be soon”.

“Aye,” Matilda puffed, “it’s always different, some pups can’t wait to get out and some pups just want to stay in” she finished with a chortle. The young mother hoped that this pup was more interested in getting out than staying in.

~~~

As easy as Harriet’s birth had been, this pup was just as, if not more, difficult. It was, as she expected, a large pup. She was one of the last few of the colony to finally give birth. Matilda, along with the others around her, whispered encouragements to her while nursing their already delivered newborns. With one final contraction, the large pup finally left her body with a soft plop (much to the happy exclamation of Matilda and the other near-by mothers). Exhausted, she wrapped her wings around her newborn and began to nurse him.

At first, she was too tired to notice anything different or strange about her new pup. He was large and healthy, much to her satisfaction. He was warm and merrily suckling, just as Harriet was. It wasn’t until she heard hushed whispers and noticed that they were directed at her that she began to suspect anything. She opened an eye and saw Matilda, grasping her newborn and staring, intrigued, at her newborn. The mother bat looked down and gasped.

She stared; he was not like Harriet had been. At. All. His body was the same as hers had been (although a bit bigger) when she was a new born, but his features were…off. Instead of the normal, light gray, fur that covered all the newborns, her pup’s fur was…not. Still somewhat damp, it looked darker, but was still noticeably unlike the other pups (and certainly not like Harriet’s was). His ears were slightly bigger and he had quite the tuft of wheat gold hair on the top of his head. What stunned her the most, however, were his eyes. Even shut, they looked abnormally big. Bigger than any bats’ of her kind she had seen (and certainly MUCH bigger than Harriet’s were when she was first born…).

She suddenly became panicked. Would the colony accept him? Would she be forced to give him up? Abnormal bat pups were sometimes “lost” when they were too different to function in the colony. Why oh why wasn’t this pup more like Harriet? She had done everything the same way she had when she was carrying Harriet. She hadn’t eaten anything strange during gestation, or flown anywhere new (flying anywhere new while pregnant will affect the pup, usually adversely). Every expectation of this pup being like her first shattered and fell into oblivion.

The newborn sensed his mother’s distress and began to mewl. She instinctively wrapped her wings about him tighter, as if to hide him from the others. Like Harriet or not, this was still her pup. She wasn’t about to let him become “lost” just because he looked a little different. She began to tremble, as if a cold wind had entered the roost. Matilda sensed her panic and scooted next to her, reassuringly.

“Now, that’s enough you lot,” Matilda gestured at the neighboring crowd, “ not the first odd pup we’ve seen. At least he’s healthy, look at how big he is. Well done, dear. You’ve done an exceptional job, bringing a big, strong pup like that into this colony,” she fiercely eyed the other gawking mothers. They began to murmur their concurrences and shift their gazes to their own, normal newborns. One new, and rather young, mother shifted shyly to John’s mother’s side,

“He reminds me of wheat in the warm season,” She whispered cheerfully, “ I used to love to watch it sway under the moon light. I think he’s beautiful, even if he is different,” she smiled timidly.

“Oh, well, thank you…” John’s mother looked at her pup, still unsure and shaken, but at least she had stopped trembling.

“What will you call him, dearie?” Matilda crooned, “Mine shall be called Lucinda, since the moon is so round” she licked her pup lovingly.

The young bat thought for a moment, she had never been one for fancy names. She enjoyed simple, strong names.

“I believe I’m going to call him, John,” she said, after a moment of quiet deliberation.

“John?” squeaked the youngest mother beside them, “Oh how cute! I have no idea what to name mine. A bit scatter minded I am, never even thought of it,” she piped quickly, “Think I’m going to name him Jasper? Oh, no, he doesn’t seem to like that at all…how about Steve? Oh dear, he seems to really not like that one…”

Matilda rolled her eyes and sighed contentedly, nestling her Lucinda. John’s mother tuned out the youngest bat’s chittering and nuzzled her own now nursing pup,

“John. Yes, my sweet John”.

Matilda smiled, glad that her young friend had settled down. Outside, the night was warm and the crickets sang. The moon was large and round, softly welcoming the newborns into the world.


	2. Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John astounds his mother again and again, then gets a little too bold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone is enjoying! I'm having serious fun writing about adorable batJohn! :]

John astounded his mother, firstly, by opening his eyes four days before any of the other pups. He astounded her again when, by opening his eyes, he revealed them to be the color of forget-me-nots, a beautiful shade of indigo-blue. Matilda and the young mother (Hollie was her name) gasped at John’s strange eyes,

“My goodness, they’re like the sky right before the sun comes up” whispered Hollie, ogling the little pup. Matilda nodded,  
“Aye, I’ve never seen a pup, or a bat for that matter, with eyes that color. They are beautiful, though, albeit strange,” Matilda spoke more to herself than John’s mother. 

From that day on, John saw almost everything with his wide, curious eyes. His mother noted how quickly he picked up on his surroundings and how his ears flicked towards even the smallest noises. The pup seemed to especially like the nightly hunts, holding onto his mother’s back. He took in everything and squealed with delight when she swooped down and snatched an insect. This pup has practically no fear, his mother thought, shaking her head in wonder.   
When Lucinda and Darvin (Hollie had decided to call him) finally opened their eyes, John stared at them interestedly. They, not knowing John was considered an unusual pup, paid him little mind and focused their newly opened eyes on their cooing mothers. 

But John noticed everything. He loved to just look at things. He eyed the mothers and pups around him. He eyed the nursing roost. He eyed the night sky. He eyed the insects that flew around and how the other bats caught and ate them. He eyed his tiny body. He especially eyed the big bat that coddled and nursed him. And, in his own little pup mind, decided that this particular bat was important and, without understanding the notion, he loved it very much.   
~~~  
One night, a fairly fierce storm blew into the region. Rain pelted the ground outside the roost in wet sheets. Lighting streaked the sky and thunder boomed. After each thunderous crack, a chorus of frightened squeals echoed from the pups. The mother’s tried to calm the poor, shaking things, licking and cooing quietly at them. John, however, was not shaking or tittering, he was staring. 

He couldn’t tear his big eyes away from the roost opening. Every time lightening streaked the sky and thunder ripped through the air, he felt his heart pound. He couldn’t explain it, the excited feeling that gripped his body while watching the storm, but he wasn’t afraid. He didn’t understand why the other pups were crying so. Perhaps they did not feel the same euphoria as he did?  
Another peel of thunder echoed through the cavern and many pups squeaked with fear. John simply smiled. Whatever this feeling was, he liked it.   
~~~  
The pups all had their eyes open now and were making the high-pitched squeaks and peeps that all pups make. John’s mother was concerned when, even after the smallest pup started making noises, he remained mostly silent. He would occasionally make the timid squeak if he was hungry, or chitter sweetly when his mother bathed him. But, for the most part, he was a very quiet pup. He was much more interested in looking and hearing and nursing than testing his lungs like the other pups. Matilda assured his mother that this was not unusual, that some pups were simply quieter than others, stating that her first pup hardly made any noise at all.

John’s mother’s concern grew, however, when the other pups began to say basic words a week or so later, and her pup hadn’t even made an attempt at speech. John simply mouth buttoned up, despite what his mother might do. 

“Perhaps he just needs some encouragement, dear,” Matilda stated optimistically, nudging at her sleepy Lucinda, “Hello darling, can you say, ‘Mama’?” Lucinda looked at her mother confusedly. Matilda repeated the word again and again. Lucinda concentrated on her mother, watching her intently. She made noises quite similar to the word, but never quite got it. Matilda smiled with satisfaction when Lucinda managed something sounding like “Manah”. 

John’s mother frowned, “He hasn’t made even an attempt at words,” she fretted, “John, sweetling, can’t you at least try to say ‘Mama’?” John poked his head out and looked at her with his wide, blue eyes, but refused to copy his mother like Lucinda had done. Hollie pointed out that at least he knew his name, something she was having a hard time teaching Darvis. This was true, anytime she said her pup’s name, or even when Hollie or Matilda said it, his little head would poke out and his ears twitch in their direction. 

“At least yours speaks,” John’s mother sighed. Darvis, much like his mother, garbled and twitted endlessly, although he couldn’t say much more than “Mama” and a sound much like the word “hungry”. Lucinda seemed like the only one out of the three that was developing at what was considered a normal pace.   
John’s mother sighed with exasperation. Oh well, maybe it was like Matilda said, he’d speak when he was ready. She looked down at her snuggled pup. He was napping, his head buried in her soft fur. She licked his head, hoping that her John wasn’t a mute. A mute bat was a dead bat. She quickly dashed that thought away. John did make noises, just not as frequently as the other pups in the roost. She shrugged and sighed again, a thing she was beginning to suspect she’d be doing a lot with this pup, and nestled her snout into Johns little neck.  
~~~  
John’s mother woke to John nudging her. The majority of the other bats were sleeping, including the pups. The sun was bright outside and it almost hurt her eyes. She yawned hugely and nuzzled her pup.

“What is it, darling?” She licked the fur on his head.  
“Mama,” John nudged her again.

“Yes, what is it sweetling?” She yawned again, what on earth does this pup want in the middle of the day?

“Mama”.

“John, dear, it’s the middle of the day, what is it?” she yawned again, somewhat irritated.

John, more determined, nudged her again, then looked up at her, “Maaamaaa” he said more slowly. His mother’s eyes widened with astonishment. Suddenly, it clicked. She squealed with delight,   
“Yes! Yes, darling! I am Mama! Oh, John, my little winglet, I thought you’d never talk!” John smiled. Using the shoulder of his wing, John then pointed to himself,

“Jawn” he stated. His mother nodded enthusiastically.

“Yes, that’s right, you are John,” but the pup was not finished. Before his mother could squeal again with happiness, John pointed to his right at the still sleeping Matilda and Lucinda.

“Maaatillldaaah. Loooossssiiiinndah,” John’s mother’s mouth dropped open. Without paying any attention to her, he then pointed to his left, “Hollliiieeee, Daaawwwvvissss”. He looked up at his mother, who gaped at him. His expressive eyes asked her if he was right. She slowly shut her mouth and nodded. Mollified, he nodded once, then snuggled back into his mother’s wings and promptly fell back asleep.   
~~~  
“I tell you, pups are the strangest thing,” Matilda chuckled. John smiled widely at her. 

“You is Matilda,” he twittered again. Matilda laughed outright at the pup.

“That’s right little winglet, now, who is this?” she tapped Lucinda’s head.

“Is Loocinda!” John squeaked triumphantly. 

“That’s right! See, darling, nothing to have worried about,” Matilda teased John’s mother, “little guy only needed some time”. John’s mother’s chest swelled with pride. Despite his late start, John actually could speak more than the other pups could. 

“Must be those big ears. He’s been listening to us the whole time!” Hollie chittered excitedly. The two mother’s had become rather fond of the peculiar little pup. Not caring that he stared at them and often let him see their own pups, which now were starting to stare back. Lucinda was the first to do it. She began to notice that John didn’t look like the other pups did. Her curious little eyes would poke out from behind her mother’s wing and stare at the gold-brown pup. John only stared back. Over the next few days, the other pups began to become curious of each other as well, ogling the pups nearest to them and slowly starting to try and communicate with them. 

John was the first to try to get his pup-mates to speak with him. 

“Me is Jawn, you is Dawvis,” John stated one twilight after his breakfast. Darvis wasn’t quite done nursing yet, and didn’t make any indication that he had heard the little bat. “ME is Jaaawwwwnnn, YOU is Daaaawwviss,” he tried again, thinking that maybe the fellow pup didn’t understand. 

Hollie nudged her little pup, who squeaked defensively at his breakfast being disturbed, “Honey, I believe John is trying to say ‘hello’,” she cooed. Darvis simply looked disgruntledly at his mother and returned to nursing. John gave up and huffed grumpily. His mother and Hollie giggled. A minutes hours later, John tried again. Deciding he might not really like Darvis, he turned to Lucinda, who was eyeing another pup nearby.

“Me is Jawn, you is Loocinda,” Lucinda’s head snapped around and ears flicked forward as she stared at John. Delighted to have someone’s attention (finally), John chirped again, “Meee is Jaaawwwnnn, yooouuuu isss-“

“Loocinnddahhh” Lucinda cut him off. John gawked at her for a second, before both pups burst out in excited squeaks. 

Soon after, Darvis became interested and began to chitter with the other two pups. John’s speech was the best out of the three but the others were quickly learning.

“This is Mama,” John said proudly one day, pointing at her. Darvis looked at him confusedly and shook his head, 

“No, THIS is Mama,” he pointed at his own mother. John scoffed and shook his head,

“No, that is Hollie,” he said, pointing at Darvis’ mother, “THIS,” he pointed at his own mother, “is Mama”. Darvis shook his head vigorously,

“No, no, no! You is wrong! This is Mama!” The little pups began to chitter furiously at each other when Hollie finally intervened. 

“We are both Mama. I am your Mama, and she is your Mama,” she explained. Darvis and John both looked at her in abashment. John turned his head to his mother’s chest to think, his brow crinkled in concentration. After a few moments he looked up at Hollie,

“You, his Mama. She, my Mama?” Hollie nodded. John’s brow furrowed even more, slowly, he turned to Matilda and Lucinda, “She, her mama?” All three of the bat mothers stared at him, wide-eyed. Concepts like this were usually very hard for pups to grasp and often caused a fair amount of confusion among them. John understanding so quickly was very unusual.

“Yes, I am her Mama,” Matilda finally broke the silence. John’s brow smoothed as he broke into a smile. 

“All Mamas!” he chittered happily as he opened his wings and gestured to the colony. 

“Yes, that’s right, all Mamas,” John’s mother nodded. John happily nuzzled her, excited that he had gotten it right. The mothers all simply sat in wonder.   
~~~  
John and the other winglets pup-talked for only a short while (much to the sadness of many mothers), and began to speak fluent bat very quickly.   
“Ah well,” sighed Matilda while the three pups chittered at each other, “pup-talk is adorable while it lasts,” and she patted Lucinda on the head, who was paying no attention to her mother at all. Matilda merely chuckled and gave her a lick on the cheek.

It was at this time that John, along with many other pups, started to ask a lot of questions. John especially liked to do this while flying on his mother’s back. 

“What’s this? What’s that? Ooooh, what’s that? Mama, what is the moon made of? How come it goes away when the sun comes out? I like the moon, it’s pretty, like you. Mama, I’m hungry. Hey, how come we get hungry?” John’s mother tried her best to answer all his questions, but as soon as one was answered, he was asking another. His mother just shook her head.   
~~~

John soon became very interested in his wings. He liked to stretch them. He liked to open them as wide as he could. He watched his mother spread her wings on the nightly hunts and copied the elegant movements. He had memorized every maneuver his mother made during flight until he was certain he could predict what move she would do next. One night, while hunting with his mother, John thought to himself,

“My wings aren’t any different than hers. Maybe a little bit smaller. I’m sure I could fly just like her”. And so convinced became the young bat that he decided that day cycle, he’d put his wings to the test. 

His mother was sound asleep, along with everyone else in the roost. John quietly shifted out of his mother’s grasp and scuttled along the cavern’s roof. He had seen the take-off area where most bats liked to launch from, and he knew it wasn’t far. He was silently slipping past a softly snoring Matilda when he heard a small squeak and jumped,

“What are you doing? It’s the middle of the day!” Lucida shrilled at him.

“Shhhh! Stop squeaking so loud!” John hissed at her.

“Well,” Lucida whispered, “what are you doing?” 

“I’m going to the take-off area,” John stated flatly. 

“What?!” Lucinda whispered frantically, “You know we’re not supposed to go there by ourselves! Why are you going there anyways?” 

John rolled his eyes at her, “Because, I am going to fly!” and spread his wings out for her in a dramatic display, puffing his chest out as much as his tiny body would let him. 

Lucinda gasped, “You can’t fly! You’re too little! Besides, we’re supposed to start learning the moon after tomorrow! John, you’ll get hurt!” John scowled at her; he didn’t like it when anyone told him he couldn’t do something.

“Well-” he started to squeak defensively, when suddenly Matilda shuffled and mumbled. Both bats went completely still and silent until she stifled a yawn and went back to snoring, softly. John made sure her breaths were deep and steady before he turned back to Lucinda,

“Oh, what do you know? How do you know I can’t fly? Huh? I’m going to try, and if you wake up your Mama or mine and tattle-tale, I’ll never EVER talk to you again!” John gave a single nod on his final note. Lucinda stared at him, wide-eyed. John stared right back, with a determination Lucinda had never seen in the little bat before. She sighed. Nothing she could say would stop him. Slowly unraveling herself from her mother’s wings, Lucinda crawled towards John,

“What are you doing?” he whispered.

“Well, I’m not going to let you go alone. If there is trouble, someone needs to be there.” John thought about it for a moment, and then nodded his head in approval. Maybe it would be better to have Lucinda go with him. He shrugged his shoulders, well, it didn’t matter who was or wasn’t coming, he was going to fly today, no matter what!

Just about as they were going to leave, they heard a frantic whisper,

“Hey! I wanna come too!” Darvis wriggled away from his mother and joined the group. John sighed with impatience but let Darvis come (much to the little bat’s excitement). They quickly made their way to the take-off area, a flat, open space which gave way to a large cavern below which had direct access to the entrance of the roosting area, perfect for diving and taking-off. John, Lucinda, and Darvis all looked at the yawning cavern below. Darvis and Lucinda both audibly gulped. Darvis even began to shake a little. John, however, felt elated. His little heart pound in his chest and he could feel what felt like liquid excitement seep through his veins. He quivered from the sensation and was eager to make more of it. 

He quickly crawled to the edge of the place. He looked into the gaping cavern below, like a gigantic mouth, just waiting to swallow him up. He could hardly contain the giggle that bubbled up out of him. Lucinda’s trembling, hushed voice came whispering out from behind him,

“John, please be careful,” John turned to look at her. He gave her a big smile and nodded. He looked down once more, tensing his muscles. The anticipation was nearly overwhelming him. He took a deep breath, and let go.  
~~~  
For a split moment, John felt the frightening realization that he was falling. His brain scrambled for what to do next and came up blank. His eyes widened and he nearly cried out. He frantically flapped his wings, hoping to stop the ever approaching cavern floor.  
By some miracle, the floor did stop getting closer, and John began to rise. His heart was pounding in his ears and could hardly hear anything but it. He was breathing rapidly and it burned his lungs. Slowly, the fear began to be replaced by wonder and joy as John realized that he was flying. He was actually flying!

The feeling he had then was overwhelming. It was like nothing he had ever felt before, and he would go great lengths again and again to feel it. His friends watched in awe as John began to get the hang of his wings. He dipped and turned, just like he had seen his mother do so many times. Around and around the roost he went, his heart leaping all the while. Darvis and Lucinda applauded him, silently. John did a loop-de-loop (and nearly fell in the process) much to their delight. Filled with confidence, John looked out at the cavern entrance, and, without another thought, darted towards it.

Before his friends could screech at him to stop, John was outside in the full blaze of the afternoon sun. Immediately John lost control. Blinded from the intense light, John tumbled and rolled until he hit a tree branch. Panicked he tried to grasp it, but the combination of adrenaline and his temporary blindness made him clumsy. Falling from the branch, he landed on the ground with a thud. 

For a moment, he just lay there, hardly able to catch his breath and his heart racing. His brain was so scrambled he couldn’t make a coherent thought. Finally, after what seemed like hours, John was able to think somewhat clearly. He wasn’t blinded anymore, but the light still hurt his eyes. His body hurt all over, he didn’t know if he would be able to fly back to the roost.

At that moment he heard a screech. Turning his ears towards the sound, he strained them to hear the noise again. Again, the screech sounded. That’s Mama’s call! She’s looking for me! He lifted himself up and gave a feeble sounding squeak. A moment or two passed, then there was another screech and, again, John weakly answered it. John began to wonder if his mother had heard him at all, because he did not hear another screech. Just when he was beginning to feel the grips of panic again, he heard a swooping noise and felt a soft thud beside him.

“John! John! Can you hear me? Darling?” John’s mother was panting heavily.

“Yes, Mama,” John answered, quietly.

“What were you thinking?! Oh, sweetling, are you hurt? Can you move?” she nudged him gently. John gave a small squeak when she nosed a particularly tender area. “Can you climb onto my back? Come on then, that’s a good pup, hold on to me tightly,” once John was on her back, John’s mother quickly took to the air. 

A sigh of relief escaped John when they entered the blessed, cool darkness of the roost. Almost all of the bats were awake now, and staring at John and his mother. She found her usual post and landed. John soon found himself wrapped in her wings. He nuzzled against her and tried not to whimper. He couldn’t stop trembling, despite how the tremors hurt. 

“Is he alright?” Hollie asked, her voice laced with apprehension. 

“Yes,” John’s mother breathed, “nothing that won’t heal in a day or two,” she licked her pup lovingly. She was equal parts infuriated and relieved. All three mothers had woken up to find their pups gone and were put into a frenzy when they heard the panicked screeches of Darvis and Lucinda. It didn’t take long to decipher what had happened through their garbled accounts and John’s mother had immediately took off to search for her pup. She was terrified that he had broken a wing when she found him. How he had managed to only acquire some bumps and bruises and not kill himself was beyond his mother’s understanding. Matilda and Hollie had both given their own pups a talking-to. They were both relieved when they saw John’s mother with her pup on her back, and him, seemingly, being no worse for wear. 

John buried his little face as far into his mother’s fur as he could, and she nestled him closer,

.“Shhh, it’s alright now, little winglet, you’re safe, you’re safe here with Mama. Oh, John, what on earth were you thinking? What would I do if I had lost you? Shhh, I’m here,” John slowly stopped trembling as his mother comforted him. She began bathing him, checking him over again. Eventually, everything quieted down and the mothers went back to (if only lightly) sleep. Lucinda and Darvis did the same, but John could not sleep. After a while, he heard Lucinda rustling about,  
“  
Psst, John,” she whispered quietly, John only barely poked his nose out, “are you okay?” John nodded, barely moving his head. Lucinda eyed him, her face looked worried, “You sure?” John just nodded again. Lucinda gave him a nod, the poor bat looked like frightened still . After a moment, she turned to him again, “John, what was it like?” John was taken aback for a moment. His brow furrowed in concentration. He remembered the overwhelming feeling he had before he had gone out into the daylight. It was still the greatest feeling he had ever had. Despite his harrowing experience, he wanted to have that feeling again. Finally, he spoke,

“It was the most wonderful feeling in the whole world,” Lucinda looked at him for a moment, then nodded her head in satisfaction.

“Well, I hope it was worth it, ‘cause we’re all in big trouble,” grumbled Darvis loudly.

“That’s enough you pups. Go back to sleep,” Matilda warned, gruffly. All three pups went silent. But John knew he had told the truth to Lucinda, it had been the greatest feeling in the world, and John wanted to do it again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, John. You adrenalin junkie you!  
> Sorry for some grammatical mistakes, I edit my own stuff so... :B Anyhoo, see you all for chapter three!

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at fanfiction. I got the idea for some batjohn last night in bed. Sorry for the slow start, but I wanted to get John's backstory in place before I delve further into this adventure. I'll be updating fairly often (I'm hoping). Anyhow, hope you enjoy!


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